Billions of years ago, on one of the first-ever Earths, a boy named Skylar will walk away from his home for the last time. Beset by dreams where he flies through the early universe as a sentient starship, he will never be safe if his secret gets out. His only chance to stay alive is to fall in with the same knights who destroyed his peasant village and live under the shadow of the king who sent them to exterminate Skylar’s people.

But powerful dreams have a way of shaping reality, and with each midnight flight across the cosmos, Skylar finds his world—and himself—changing. Magic is another thing which should only exist in dreams, yet Skylar has it—one more secret that needs keeping.

Against a waking life full of monsters, warriors, swords, sorcery, treasure, and ancient mysteries, Skylar has only one key for putting all the pieces together: the Secret Sky that haunts his sleeping mind.

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At 474 pages this intriguing tale is not your typical middle grade book. The 33 chapters are narrated by a mysterious person who challenges the reader directly and provides a few smiles and laughs along the way. His frequent insights often begin a chapter or occur on short breaks from relaying the story like this one from chapter 6:

That said, I may have noticed a few things about you– embarrassing things that would be impolite to point out. But since we're in this together, and I need you to trust me, I'm going to come clean about them.

But let me get back to the plot. Ten-year-old Young Skyler is not your typical protagonist. He’d like to live a normal life but is soon challenged with a test where he must be alone for one night- Judgement Night. Skyler has no reason to do this except his older brother went through the same thing and survived. It’s a confusing night and it gets even worse the next day when he returns home and finds his village destroyed and his family gone.

The knights who did this take him on a long journey to his new life where he will be under the rule of a boy king. When Skyler dreams it’s about living among the stars where he turns into a spaceship. This is where he begins to get answers as to his existence.

Back on young earth Skyler soon reveals the magic that he has discovered (often described as “m” word). He can tame animals and create weapons from granite.

I’m purposely not telling you too much so you can discover on your own the intricate storytelling. SECRET SKY-THE YOUNG UNIVERSE will have you constantly guessing the direction of the plot. There are still questions by the end as this is just Volume 1, but rest assured the author is already deep into writing the next installment.

Perfect for those who enjoy mystery, magic (whoops I said it again. My apologies to the narrator), and an engaging main character.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

T. Alan Horne is a writer of science fiction, fantasy, and tales of high adventure. He specializes in taking familiar genres to new places and creating characters that readers get to keep forever as souvenirs to live in their imaginations.

His first book, Advent 9, garnered high praise, and was called “Absolutely Brilliant!” by bestselling author David Farland—the writing teacher and mentor of Brandon Sanderson, Brandon Mull, Stephenie Meyer, and James Dashner.

Mr. Horne spends most of his time writing but occasionally answers fan inquiries. You can find him online at author@talanhorne.com or on the X platform (formerly Twitter) under the handle @TAlanHorne.

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It’s almost time for another Marvelous Middle Grade Monday. Won’t you join us? It’s here I share highlights from other individuals blogging about middle grade books. Many of the posts will have reviews, interviews, and tips on writing. Take a look at PAST MMGM POSTS.

It’s easy to get a spot in the lineup. All you have to do is email me the title of the book or feature and a link to your blog at gpcolo[at]gmail[dot]com

Make sure you put MMGM or Marvelous Middle Grade Monday in the subject line so it gets sorted accurately–and don’t forget to say what you’re featuring) You MUST email me your link by Sunday evening (11 PM Eastern Time) in order to be included in the list of links for the coming Monday.

*Please note: these posts are not a reflection of my own opinions on the books featured. Each blogger is responsible for their own MMGM content and I do not pre-screen reviews ahead of time, nor do I control what books they choose. I simply assemble the list based on the links that are emailed to me.